Transference & Winners

I have been amazed how many talented people have sat in my classes over the years. These were successful (at the time) in their chosen area, and I wonder if they have been able to continue into their future. Some I know did not, but a few have.  I think this was largely due to their growth mindset and an ability to transfer their actions into all aspects of their life. I think that far too many had the fixed mindset and also wanted to compartmentalise their lives.

I often see students who are good in sports or the arts struggle with class. In truth it is more likely to be sports, as I think that students of the arts are able to transfer better or maybe they just develop greater resilience and mental toughness. They have success in their activity, but cannot have the same level of success in other areas, with me that would be academics. In many of the cases, the student sees other activities as separate parts of their lives, with little or no linkage. They simply assumed that they would be able to 'flick a switch' and mentally move from one area to the other. This is not the recipe for further growth in it either area. We carry the 'wins and losses from all areas of our lives' with us, and a simple 'hat swap' is not going to work. I see many of the problems coming from a growth mindset that is heavily goal oriented in one or two aspects of their life, and the 'divorcing' of other aspects as less meaningful in some way.  

Transference is this ability to take successes (and failures) from all areas of our lives and weave them together in a positive way. I suppose it's a growth mindset in action. I think the best introduction and lesson I had on this was from a 15 year old former student. Scott was a very talented sportsman, but struggled at school. He knew he had strengths and weaknesses, and academics was not really a strong point. After giving back another test I saw him at the end of class and started to tell him not to give up as I knew he was working really well and providing effort to his studies. Scott always arrived prepared for class and engaged in all activities so it frustrated me somewhat that he was still struggling. With a smile he turned and told me that it was OK, not to worry and that he would continue pushing himself. His next comment has stuck in my memory and I often repeat it to classes - "I have to train myself. I know that if I give up, it will make it that much easier to give up when I'm having a bad day." I think the maturity and confidence of his words struck a chord. Of course he is right, it goes to other adages like "as you sow, so shall you reap", and the crazy thing is he made it! His dream was always to play at the top level in his sport, thus proving commitment. Amazingly Scott was not always a winner in the more traditional terms, with failures aplenty but a really calm and mature attitude, and perseverance made him one.

I look back and think that Scott might not have been the most gifted sportsperson I ever met or taught, but he is one of the only ones to I know to attain his dream. The difference as I see it is in his ability to transfer all parts of his life into creating a winner. He is able to transfer the lessons learnt in all areas and really did adopt a growth mindset. Weakness, failure and learning all form the foundation of growth and resilience. 

The current mindset of student athletes I see is one of compartmentalization - lessons learnt in one area keep there, as the self-promotion kicks in to hide the weakness and learning experiences. But the resilience that the transference provides is lost. I  think that the resilience that Scott gained by attitude and mindset is obvious, but the continuation of it in current generations seems stymied by the helicopters that constantly circle.